USDA Nearly 36000 Retailers Engaged in Food Stamp Fraud

Just released:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has
published a report
estimating that 35,891 food retailers around the country engaged in food stamp fraud, illegally “trafficking” more than $1 billion in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits annually over the three-year period from 2012 through 2014.

“Retailer trafficking of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits occurs primarily when SNAP recipients sell their benefits for cash to food retailers, often at a discount,” the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service said
in a summary of the report
.

“SNAP benefits are permitted for the purchase of eligible food items from authorized food retailers,”
said the report
. “The sale or exchange of SNAP benefits for anything other than food sold by an authorized SNAP retailer is illegal.”